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G Fürstenberger

Publications and source records attributed to G Fürstenberger.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Diversity of mouse lipoxygenases: identification of a subfamily of epidermal isozymes exhibiting a differentiation-dependent mRNA expression pattern.

By using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction technology (RT-PCR) and Northern blot analysis, the tissue-specific mRNA expression patterns of seven mouse lipoxygenases (LOX)--including 5S-, 8S-, three isoforms of 12S-, 12R-LOX, and a LOX of an as-of-yet unknown specificity, epidermis-type LOX-3 (e-LOX-3)--were investigated in NMRI mice. Among the various tissues tested epidermis and forestomach were found to express the broadest spectrum of LOX. With the exception of 5S- and platelet-type 12S-LOX (p12S-LOX) the remaining LOX showed a preference to exclusive expression in stratifying epithelia of the mouse, in particular the integumental epidermis. The expression of the individual LOX in mouse epidermis was found to depend on the state of terminal differentiation of the keratinocytes. mRNA of epidermis-type 12S-LOX (e12S-LOX) was detected in all layers of neonatal and adult NMRI mouse skin, whereas expression of p12S-LOX, 12R-LOX, and e-LOX-3 was restricted to suprabasal epidermal layers of neonatal and adult mice. 8S-LOX mRNA showed a body-site-dependent expression in that it was detected in stratifying epithelia of footsole and forestomach but not in back skin epidermis. In the latter, 8S-LOX mRNA was strongly induced upon treatment with phorbol esters. With the exception of e12S-LOX and p12S-LOX, the isozymes that are preferentially expressed in stratifying epithelia are structurally related and may be grouped together into a distinct subgroup of epidermis-type LOX.

Aging↗

Cancer chemoprevention through interruption of multistage carcinogenesis. The lessons learnt by comparing mouse skin carcinogenesis and human large bowel cancer.

Whilst in the early stages, neoplastic development is predominantly triggered by environmental genotoxic and non-genotoxic carcinogens, tumour progression becomes more and more autonomous at later stages. In this context a dysregulation of arachidonic acid metabolism seems to play a disastrous role. Conversely, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) rank among the most potent and most promising agents for cancer chemoprevention probably because of their ability to inhibit prostaglandin biosynthesis, in particular, at the level of the 'pro-inflammatory' enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). A pathological overexpression of COX-2 resulting in excessive prostaglandin production has been found already in early stages of carcinogenesis and seems to be a consistent feature of neoplastic development in a wide variety of tissues. COX-2 overexpression is thought to occur along signalling pathways of inflammation and tissue repair which become activated in the course of tumour promotion and, due to autocrine and auto-stimulatory mechanisms, finally lead to some autonomy of tumour development (self-promotion). Prostaglandins formed along a dysregulated COX pathway have been shown to mediate tumour promotion in animal experiments and may play a role, in addition, in other processes involved in tumour growth such as angiogenesis, metastasis and immunosuppression. Moreover, genotoxic byproducts such as organic free radicals, reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde produced in the course of prostanoid biosynthesis may contribute to genetic instability (mutator phenotype) of neoplastic cells thereby promoting malignant progression. Such mixtures of physiologically highly active mediators and genotoxic byproducts are, in addition, formed along the various lipoxygenase-catalysed pathways of arachidonic acid metabolism some of which also become dysregulated during tumour development and, therefore, provide novel targets of future chemopreventive approaches.

Animals↗

Promutagenic etheno-DNA adducts in multistage mouse skin carcinogenesis: correlation with lipoxygenase-catalyzed arachidonic acid metabolism.

Formation of the lipoxygenase-catalyzed metabolites of arachidonic acid, 8-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (8-HETE) and 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE), and of the exocyclic DNA adducts 1,N(6)-ethenodeoxyadenosine (epsilondA) and 3, N(4)-ethenodeoxycytidine (epsilondC) was investigated in NMRI mouse skin carcinogenesis induced by 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) and promoted by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA). In reversible papillomas obtained after 20 weeks of TPA treatment, 15- and 68-fold higher contents of 8-HETE and 12-HETE, respectively, were observed, which were paralleled by 12- and 9-fold increased amounts of epsilondA and epsilondC, respectively. When compared to the level in vehicle-treated control skin, these elevations were statistically significant. In irreversible papillomas harvested 20 weeks after the last TPA treatment, the levels of HETEs and etheno-DNA adducts were found to be slightly reduced, as compared to those in reversible papillomas, but were still increased over control levels in age-matched mice. Comparison of mean group values by simple regression analysis showed a close positive correlation between HETE and etheno-DNA adduct levels. Consistent with the miscoding properties of epsilondA causing mainly A --> T transversions, its increased formation in papillomas could thus contribute to this type of mutation in codon 61 of cHa-ras, shown to be a hallmark of DMBA-initiated and TPA-promoted mouse skin carcinogenesis. Although direct evidence that etheno adducts are derived from lipoxygenase-catalyzed metabolites of arachidonic acid is missing, our results implicate DNA damage by oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation as a cause of genetic instability observed at late stages of tumor promotion in mouse skin carcinogenesis.

12-Hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic Acid↗

Expression of PGF(2alpha) receptor mRNA in normal, hyperplastic and neoplastic skin.

Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Northern blot analysis was used to determine the level of expression of prostaglandin F(2alpha) (FP) receptor mRNA in various mouse tissues, including normal, hyperplastic and neoplastic mouse epidermis. Steady-state concentrations of FP receptor mRNA were low in normal and hyperplastic epidermis. The response of the epidermis to the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) was biphasic in that FP receptor mRNA was increased immediately after treatment, followed by a long-lasting down-regulation at later time points. FP receptor mRNA was down-regulated in the majority of papillomas obtained by the mouse skin carcinogenesis initiation-promotion protocol. In carcinomas, FP receptor mRNA expression was similar to that in normal epidermis. The steady-state concentration of FP mRNA was inversely correlated with PGF(2alpha) levels in normal and hyperplastic epidermis and in papillomas, indicating that FP mRNA expression is regulated by this eicosanoid.

Adolescent↗

Prostaglandin-H-synthase isozyme expression in normal and neoplastic human skin.

Expression of prostaglandin-H-synthase (PGHS) isozymes was analyzed in 50 biopsies of normal human skin and of pre-malignant and malignant skin lesions, by means of quantitative RT-PCR, immunoprecipitation and Western blotting, as well as immunohistochemistry. Normal skin constitutively expressed PGHS-1 in all cell layers of the epidermis, in endothelial cells of small blood vessels and in sweat-gland epithelium. PGHS-2 expression was very low and restricted to a few keratinocytes of the interfollicular and follicular epidermis. Steady-state concentrations of PGHS-1 and PGHS-2 mRNA were similar in normal skin and in basal-cell carcinomas, but PGHS-1 mRNA was reduced and PGHS-2 mRNA was elevated in actinic keratoses, squamous-cell carcinomas and keratoacanthomas. PGHS-1 protein was detected in all tumor biopsies, being occasionally increased in basal-cell carcinomas. High amounts of PGHS-2 protein were found in actinic keratoses, squamous-cell carcinomas and keratoacanthomas, but not in basal-cell carcinomas. Four malignant melanomas included in this study contained PGHS-1 but no PGHS-2 protein. Immunohistochemical analysis of the biopsies identified keratinocytes, in addition to cells of inflammatory infiltrates and of dendritic morphology, as the major PGHS-expressing cell types. PGHS-2-specific signals were spread throughout the epidermal part of actinic keratoses and squamous-cell carcinomas. These data suggest that constitutive up-regulation of PGHS-2 expression is a consistent pre-malignant event in squamous-cell cancer development in man, as it is in animal models of skin carcinogenesis. Thus, pre-cancerous lesions such as actinic keratoses present a likely target for chemoprevention of skin cancer by selective PGHS-2 inhibitors.

Aged↗

cDNA cloning, genomic structure, and chromosomal localization of a novel murine epidermis-type lipoxygenase.

Using a combination of degenerate PCR technique and conventional screening procedures, we isolated a cDNA encoding a novel lipoxygenase, termed epidermis-type lipoxygenase-3 (e-LOX-3, gene symbol Aloxe3), from mouse skin. Aloxe3 mRNA is expressed in the stratified epithelia of skin, tongue, and forestomach. The cDNA encodes a protein of 711 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 80.6 kDa. The amino acid sequence shows approximately 54% identity to the recently identified 12(R)-lipoxygenase. Sequence comparison revealed a segment of 41 amino acid residues localized near the boundary between the N- and the C-terminal domain sequences of the molecule, a structural feature that is also characteristic of 12(R)-lipoxygenase, suggesting that these two epidermis-derived lipoxygenases may be members of a novel structural class of mammalian lipoxygenases. The novel lipoxygenase gene is divided into 15 exons and 14 introns, spanning 22.3 kb of genomic DNA. By interspecific backcross analysis, the novel gene was localized to the central region of mouse chromosome 11.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Murine 12(R)-lipoxygenase: functional expression, genomic structure and chromosomal localization.

A cDNA, recently cloned (by Krieg et al. (1998)) from mouse skin, was shown to encode a 12(R)-lipoxygenase. When expressed in HEK cells, the recombinant protein converted methyl arachidonate into the corresponding 12-HETE ester which was shown to be the R-enantiomer by chiral phase chromatography. Neither arachidonic acid nor linoleic acid were substrates for the recombinant protein. The structure of the 12(R)-lipoxygenase gene is unique among all animal lipoxygenases in that it is divided into 15 exons and 14 introns spanning approximately 12.5 kb. By interspecific backcross analysis, the 12(R)-lipoxygenase gene was localized to the central region of mouse chromosome 11.

Animals↗

Protein-kinase-Cmu expression correlates with enhanced keratinocyte proliferation in normal and neoplastic mouse epidermis and in cell culture.

In order to gain insight into the biological function of a PKC iso-enzyme, the protein kinase Cmu, we analyzed the expression pattern of this protein in mouse epidermis and keratinocytes in culture. Daily analysis of neonatal mouse epidermis immediately after birth showed a time-dependent reduction in the PKCmu content. Expression of the proliferating-cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), indicative of the proliferative state of cells, was reduced synchronously with PKCmu as the hyperplastic state of the neonatal tissue declined. In epidermal mouse keratinocytes, fractionated according to their maturation state, PKCmu expression was restricted to PCNA-positive basal-cell fractions. In primary cultures of those cells, growth arrest and induction of terminal differentiation by Ca2+ resulted in strongly reduced PKCmu expression, concomitantly with the loss of PCNA expression. Treatment of PMK-R1 keratinocytes with 100 nM of the mitogen 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) resulted in activation of PKCmu, reflected by translocation from the cytosolic to the particulate fraction and by shifts in electrophoretic mobility. DNA synthesis was significantly inhibited by the PKCmu inhibitor Goedecke 6976, while Goedecke 6983 did not inhibit PKCmu. Carcinomas generated according to the 2-stage carcinogenesis protocol in mouse skin consistently exhibited high levels of PKCmu. These data correlate PKCmu expression with the proliferative state of murine keratinocytes and point to a role of PKCmu in growth stimulation. A correlation between PKCmu expression and enhanced cell proliferation was also observed for NIH3T3 fibroblasts transfected with and overexpressing human PKCmu.

Animals↗

Constitutive expression of 8-lipoxygenase in papillomas and clastogenic effects of lipoxygenase-derived arachidonic acid metabolites in keratinocytes.

The expression pattern, enzymatic activity, and products of 8-lipoxygenase (LOX) were analyzed in normal and neoplastic skin of NMRI mice. While barely detectable in normal epidermis, 8-LOX was transiently induced by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and constitutively expressed in papillomas but not carcinomas obtained by the initiation-promotion protocol of mouse skin carcinogenesis. The product profile and chirality of both the native and the recombinant protein produced the S enantiomers of 8-hydroxy-5Z,9E,11Z,14Z-eicosatetraenoic acid (8-HETE) and 9-hydroxy-10E,12Z-octadecadienoic acid (9-HODE) as the main arachidonic acid- and linoleic acid-derived metabolites. As compared with normal epidermis, papillomas exhibited 25- and 4-fold elevated levels of 8-HETE and 9-HODE, respectively. However, the varying S to R ratios of 8-HETE and the predominance of 9(R)-HODE indicated that in addition to 8(S)-LOX, other enzymes yet to be defined may be involved in 8-HETE and 9-HODE production. The massive accumulation of both 8-HETE and 12-hydroxy-5Z,8Z,10E,14Z-eicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE) point to a critical role of these LOX pathways in epidermal tumor development, in particular in the papilloma stage. Here we showed that 8- and 12-hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acids and 8- and 12-HETE induce chromosomal alterations in cycling primary basal keratinocytes.

12-Hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic Acid↗

Metabolic targets of cancer chemoprevention: interruption of tumor development by inhibitors of arachidonic acid metabolism.

Tumor promotion is understood as a process that favors the clonal outgrowth of single mutated (initiated) cells to premalignant lesions through co-mitogenic and anti-apoptotic effects. This process can be evoked by repeated induction of a regenerative tissue response as achieved either by irritation and wounding or by agents (tumor promoters) that interact with the corresponding pathways of cellular signaling. Metabolic processes regulated by such pathways and essential for tumor development are potential targets of cancer chemoprevention. Examples are provided by the expression of ornithine decarboxylase and the activation of eicosanoid formation from arachidonic acid. Arachidonic acid metabolism is a particularly attractive and important target of chemopreventive measures. Its induction is a characteristic response to tissue damage and irritation and an apparently critical event in epithelial tumor promotion. Inhibitors of eicosanoid formation, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, rank among the most powerful chemopreventive agents in animal models and have been shown to halve the incidence of colorectal cancer in man. Recently, the role of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)-catalyzed prostaglandin synthesis has been the subject of much attention. COX-2 is a typical 'emergency enzyme', since in most tissues it is transiently induced only in the course of repair and defense reactions. In epithelial neoplasia, i.e. in skin and colorectal tumors, the enzyme is constitutively overexpressed along different molecular pathways, and it seems to be critically involved in tumor promotion. Consequently, specific COX-2 inhibitors have been shown to exhibit considerable cancer chemopreventive potential. The putative role of other pathways of arachidonic acid metabolism in tumor promotion and malignant progression is presently under investigation.

Animals↗

Production of sophorolipids from whey. II. Product composition, surface active properties, cytotoxicity and stability against hydrolases by enzymatic treatment.

Sophorolipids, obtained by a two-stage process starting from deproteinized whey concentrate using Cryptococcus curvatus ATCC 20509 and Candida bombicola ATCC 22214, were compared to products from one-stage processes, using different lipidic compounds as substrates. Results showed that above all carbon source and not cultivation conditions had a distinct influence on the composition of the crude product mixture and therefore on the physicochemical and biological properties of the sophorolipids, such as, for example, surface activity, cytotoxicity and stability against hydrolases. The results were completed by corresponding data for purified mono- and diacetylated (17-hydroxyoctadecenoic)-1',4"-lactonized sophorolipids. Crude sophorolipid mixtures showed moderate to good surface active properties (SFTmin 39 mN m-1, CMC 130 mg l-1), water solubilities (2-3 g l-1) and low cytotoxicities (LC50 300-700 mg l-1). In contrast, purified sophorolipids were more surface active (SFTmin 36 mN m-1, CMC 10 mg l-1), less water soluble (max. 70 mg l-1) and showed stronger cytotoxic effects (LC50 15 mg l-1). Incubation of crude sophorolipid mixtures with different hydrolases demonstrated that treatment with commercially available lipases such as from Candida rugosa and Mucor miehei distinctly reduced the surface active properties of the sophorolipids, while treatment with porcine liver esterase and glycosidases had no effect.

Animals↗

Cellular localization of cyclo-oxygenase isozymes in Crohn's disease and colorectal cancer.

Deregulation of cyclo-oxygenase isozyme expression has been shown to be a consistent feature of inflammatory bowel diseases and colorectal cancer in humans. This study investigated the cellular localization of aberrant cyclo-oxygenase expression in normal and diseased colon. Biopsies of seven normal colonic tissues, eight tissue samples from patients suffering from Crohn's disease, five polyps from patients with familiar adenomatous polyposis coli, and ten sporadic adenocarcinomas were analyzed using isozyme-selective immunoprecipitation, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Cyclo-oxygenase-1 expression was demonstrated in normal human colon, Crohn's disease, and colorectal tumors. In normal colon and also in adenomatous polyps, cyclo-oxygenase-1 specific immunosignals were localized to epithelial cells of the upper part of the crypts and endocrine cells of the lower part. In Crohn's disease cyclo-oxygenase-1 expression was restricted to cells of the inflammatory infiltrate. While barely detectable in normal colon, cyclo-oxygenase-2 protein was strongly increased in epithelial cells located in the uppermost part of the crypts, in surface epithelial cells, and in mononuclear cells of the lamina propria of Crohn's disease. The constitutive overexpression of cyclo-oxygenase-2 protein observed in the majority of the adenomatous polyps and all adenocarcinomas was attributed to both epithelial and interstitial cells in that the latter predominated in adenomas, and epithelial cells were the prevailing cyclo-oxygenase-2 expressing cell type in adenocarcinomas. In conclusion, both autocrine and paracrine effects of aberrant cyclooxygenase-2 expression may contribute to the development of Crohn's disease and colonic tumor development.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Suppression or elevation of cytosolic phospholipase A2 alters keratinocyte prostaglandin synthesis, growth, and apoptosis.

Prostaglandins and other arachidonic acid (AA) metabolites are synthesized by keratinocytes in response to tumor promoters and are produced at very high levels in tumors. After phorbol ester treatment, AA is hydrolyzed from keratinocytes primarily by the cytosolic form of phospholipase A2 (cPLA2), which exhibited a strong substrate preference for phosphatidylcholine over phosphatidylethanolamine and AA over other fatty acids. Phorbol esters increase cPLA2 activity but not the level of expression. To dissociate increased cPLA2 activity from other phorbol ester effects and thus determine the effects of altered AA release on cell growth, the murine keratinocyte cell line, HEL-30, was stably transfected with the sense or antisense cDNA for cPLA2. The resulting cell lines displayed corresponding over- or underexpression and up to 23-fold differences in cPLA2 activity between them. Phorbol ester caused a 15-fold difference in AA release between sense and antisense transfectants. Prostaglandin E2 levels correlated with AA release levels. The sense transfectants showed an enhanced proliferative capacity, based on increased cell number over time and [3H]thymidine incorporation. The antisense transfectants had significantly (>60%) reduced growth rates, compared with both parental cells and sense transfectants. The extent of apoptosis was determined in tumors from cell lines grown in graft chambers in vivo. The number of apoptotic cells was significantly greater in tumors from the sense transfectants, based on terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling staining, compared with the parental or antisense lines. These data are in agreement with a recent study (M. C. Stern et al., Mol. Carcinog., 20: 137-142, 1997) showing a correlation between increased apoptosis and tumor progression in this model system. These results suggest that the elevated eicosanoid synthesis that is observed in skin carcinomas contributes to the growth and progression of these tumors.

Animals↗

Localization of prostaglandin-H synthase-1 and -2 in mouse skin: implications for cutaneous function.

Prostaglandin-H synthase (PGHS)-1 and -2 expression in mouse skin and in keratinocytes in culture was determined using immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis. In normal skin PGHS-1 immunoreactivity was found in individual keratinocytes present in the interfollicular epidermis and the upper part of the hair follicle. PGHS-2 immunostaining was detected in very few individual basal cells of the interfollicular epidermis and of the hair follicle. Upon induction by TPA of an inflammatory epidermal hyperplasia (regenerative hyperplasia) the number of PGHS-2-expressing keratinocytes scattered throughout the basal but not the suprabasal compartment of the interfollicular epidermis was found to be increased while PGHS-1 expression remained unchanged. PGHS-2 immunoreactivity in paraffin sections from TPA-treated skin showed a nuclear in some and a perinuclear and cytoplasmic localization in other keratinocytes. This different distribution may correlate with the proliferative state, since immunofluorescence analysis of mouse keratinocytes in culture demonstrated a predominant perinuclear and cytoplasmic PGHS-2 localization in cycling keratinocytes but a prevalent staining of the nucleus and the nuclear membrane in noncycling cells. Stimulation of proliferation of murine primary keratinocytes by serum resulted in an increased PGHS-2 expression, whereas induction of terminal differentiation by Ca2+ caused a down-regulation of PGHS-2 protein. Only minor changes in PGHS-1 expression were seen. Our data suggest that expression of PGHS-2 in mouse skin epidermis is related to epithelial regeneration.

Animals↗

cDNA cloning of a 8-lipoxygenase and a novel epidermis-type lipoxygenase from phorbol ester-treated mouse skin.

Using a combination of PCR cloning and conventional screening procedures, we isolated from phorbol ester-treated mouse epidermis two full length cDNA clones encoding novel lipoxygenases. One of the cDNAs turned out to be identical to the recently cloned 8-lipoxygenase [Jisaka et al., J. Biol. Chem. 272 (1997) 24 410-24 416], the open reading frame of the second one corresponded to a protein of 701 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 80.6 kDa. The amino acid sequence showed 50.8% identity to human 15-lipoxygenase 2, approximately 40% to 5-lipoxygenase and 35% to 12- and 15-lipoxygenases. A unique structural feature is the insertion of 31 amino acid residues in the amino-terminal part of the molecule. Based on these data, we conclude that this epidermis-derived cDNA encodes a novel lipoxygenase isoform termed provisionally epidermis-type lipoxygenase 2 (e-LOX 2).

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Localization of prostaglandin H synthase isoenzymes in murine epidermal tumors: suppression of skin tumor promotion by inhibition of prostaglandin H synthase-2.

The growth factor- and phorbol ester-inducible prostaglandin H synthase (PGHS)-2 has been found to be constitutively overexpressed in epidermal tumors generated by the initiation-promotion protocol in murine skin, whereas the expression of PGHS-1 does not change under these conditions. In this paper we report the intra-tumor distribution of the aberrantly expressed PGHS-2 and the cancer chemopreventive activity of a specific PGHS-2 inhibitor. By immunohistochemical methods using isoenzyme-specific antibodies, we found that the PGHS-1 protein was expressed in keratinocytes and Langerhans cells dispersed throughout the epithelial part of papillomas and squamous cell carcinomas and in inflammatory infiltrates occasionally seen in these tumors. A uniform pattern of PGHS-2 expression was observed in the basal keratinocytes of papillomas and in the follicular keratinocytes of carcinomas. In addition, Langerhans cells as well as tumor-associated inflammatory infiltrates exhibited PGHS-2-specific immunoreactivity. PGHS-2-catalyzed prostaglandin synthesis stimulated by the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13 acetate (TPA) in mouse epidermis in vivo was dose-dependently suppressed by topical administration of SC-58125, a specific PGHS-2 inhibitor. TPA-induced edema formation, epidermal DNA synthesis, and mitotic activity were not impaired by SC-58125 applied at a dose that inhibited TPA-induced prostaglandin E2 synthesis. However, the repetitive epicutaneous administration of SC-58125 substantially and significantly suppressed papilloma development. Malignant progression of papillomas was slightly retarded by the drug. These results indicate that aberrant expression of PGHS-2 in epidermal tumors may be a relevant target for prevention of epidermal cancer development in experimental animals and that the PGHS-2-specific inhibitor SC-58125, which is a potent inhibitor of tumor promotion in mouse skin, may be important for cancer chemoprevention in humans as well.

Animals↗

Arachidonic acid metabolism in primary irritant dermatitis produced by patch testing of human skin with surfactants.

A clinical study was performed to determine the effects of patch testing human skin with four industrially used surfactants on erythema formation, transepidermal water loss, and the contents in suction blister fluids of primary proinflammatory mediators including arachidonic acid, eicosanoids, and IL-1 alpha, which were analyzed by quantitative gas chromatography/negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry and by an enzyme-immunoassay, respectively. Benzalkonium chloride (BKCI) and sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) elicited erythema and caused increased transepidermal water loss, indicating a disturbance of the epidermal barrier. Triethanolamine (TEA) and Tween 80 did not evoke these gross symptoms of inflammation. Suction blister fluids collected after a 24-h application of BKCl, SLS, and Tween 80 contained significantly increased amounts of individual eicosanoids whereas TEA induced no response. The induced eicosanoid profile was characteristic for each compound, pointing to different cell types of skin to be involved in their production. The elevation of prostaglandin and LTB4 contents correlated with the induction of erythema and the impairment of the epidermal barrier as shown for BKCl and SLS and preceded the maximum of erythema formation. IL-1 alpha contents did not correlate with these gross symptoms of inflammation. The results of this in vivo study support those of a previous study using human keratinocytes in culture indicating the release of arachidonic acid and prostaglandins to be an early event involved in the interaction of keratinocytes with surfactants. Moreover, the in vivo data with human skin underscore the mechanistic relationship to the in vitro model and support the concept that arachidonic acid and eicosanoid release from keratinocytes can be used as a marker of primary skin irritation.

Adult↗

Induction of apoptosis by an inhibitor of cAMP-specific PDE in malignant murine carcinoma cells overexpressing PDE activity in comparison to their nonmalignant counterparts.

In order to study potential changes in phosphodiesterase (PDE) activity associated with malignant transformation, normal primary keratinocytes and cells corresponding to different stages of epidermal tumor development in mouse skin were analyzed with respect to their 3',5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) hydrolyzing activity. Expression of cAMP-specific PDE-4, intracellular cAMP content, and the sensitivity to the growth inhibitory effect of the PDE-4-specific inhibitor 7-benzylamino-6-chloro-2 piperazino-4-pyrrolidino-pteridine (DC-TA-46) were studied in the two papilloma cell lines, MSCP6 and 308, and in the highly malignant carcinoma cell line CarB. No significant difference in soluble PDE activity and in intracellular cAMP was found in the two papilloma cell lines when compared to primary keratinocytes. In contrast, the spindle-cell carcinoma cell line CarB exhibited significantly higher PDE activity, concomitant with the lowest cAMP level. In all cell lines and also in the primary keratinocytes, rolipram-sensitive PDE-4 activity accounted for the major cAMP-hydrolyzing activity. In primary keratinocytes and in MSCP6 cells, the PDE-4 inhibitor DC-TA-46 induced at best marginal growth inhibition, whereas cell growth of 308 cells was markedly affected at concentrations > 2 microM. The carcinoma cell line CarB showed the highest sensitivity to DC-TA-46 (IC50 = 0.8 +/- 0.3 microM). Treatment of CarB cells with DC-TA-46 strongly inhibits intracellular PDE activity, resulting in a marked and long-lasting rise of cAMP. After 24 h of treatment, arrest in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle is induced. Treatment with concentrations > 2 microM of this highly effective PDE inhibitor results in induction of apoptotic cell death, as detected by fluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry, and ELISA-based determination of fragmented DNA in intact cells.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases↗